2. Skills required

3. What you'll do

You could work in a wide range of businesses and industries, public services, utilities, defence and research.

You'll work closely with project managers, business analysts and graphic designers, to find out what the client wants and the best way to achieve it.

Usually, you’ll work in a team.

You could work on a wide variety of projects, from financial databases to robotics to apps for phones and tablets. You may use a number of programming languages or project management tools.

Your day-to-day tasks may include:

talking through requirements with the client and the development team

taking part in technical design and progress meetings

writing or amending computer code

testing software and fixing problems

keeping accurate records of the development process, changes and results

carrying out trials and quality checks before release

maintaining and supporting systems once they're up and running

As an experienced developer, you may supervise a programming team and provide feedback on coding work.

4. Salary

Starter: £20,000 to £30,000

Experienced: £30,000 to £40,000

Highly Experienced: £50,000 to £70,000

These figures are a guide.

5. Working hours, patterns and environment

You'll usually work 37 to 40 hours a week. You may need to do overtime and weekend work to meet deadlines or to fit around your client's business.

You'll be office-based but may travel to meet clients and fulfil contracts. You may need a full driving licence.

6. Career path and progression

With experience, you could become a senior developer, with team or project management, planning or research responsibilities. You could move into related areas like systems design, IT architecture and business systems analysis.